Read This and Get Triggered

I finally got to try out my new Timney trigger at 100 yards. It looks like it works.

That’s 22 rounds from my Ruger Precision Rifle. I started in the center with two fouling shots of cheap ammo, and then I went around the bullseyes, starting at 7:00 and going clockwise. I put 5 rounds into each. The bullseyes on the left were shot with Hornady ELD Match 140-grain, and the ones on the left got 147-grain. Before I shot the last bullseye, I adjusted the scope to put my shots in the center.

I would call myself “giddy” at this moment.

There are three kinds of shooting problems. Lack of ability, bad equipment, and failure to understand the equipment. I was concerned that I might be dealing with the first problem. Not any more! Obviously, if I can get the right equipment and learn how to use it correctly, I can hit things.

The trigger that came with the gun was good by hunting standards, but Ruger fixed it so it would not go below a certain pull weight. I think the number is 2.5 pounds. You can change this by removing a spring, but I wanted to go first-class for once, so I bought a Timney trigger. I believe it sets at half a pound and goes off at a pound. I don’t remember. Anyway, it’s a very easy trigger to shoot. You can see the difference it makes. I would say it reduces the diameter of my groups by around 2/3.

My second group, not counting the fouling shots, really opened up, and it was still well under 1 MOA

The gun can shoot. The ammo can shoot. I can shoot. What a relief. Now instead of despairing about my potential, I can think about fine-tuning.

Hornady ELD is showing up for sale again, and I wanted to find out whether my gun preferred 140-grain or 147-grain before ordering more. I can’t see a difference, so I think the best thing is to get the weight that has the best ballistic coefficient. I can buy enough to keep me going until I figure handloading out.

Does my experience mean the original trigger is bad? I don’t know. I would think there must be people who could shoot this well with the stock parts. I am inclined to believe the problem wasn’t so much that the trigger was bad, but that I was not good at fighting suboptimal triggers. If that’s true, then I should be able to improve with all my guns.

Now that I have a load I like, I can head out to the long-range gun range I found and start learning. The cheap Sellier & Bellot FMJ I used today for fouling shots will be good enough for nearly anything I do out there, and when I get better, I can break out the good stuff and try to tighten my groups more.

The cool weather is starting here, so I should have a lot of good days for shooting at 100 yards on my farm. Tonight the bugs tried to eat me, and it rained in the afternoon so I couldn’t shoot until it was starting to get dim.

Should I buy any more junk for the gun? It has a new bolt shroud and the Timney trigger. Some people like Atlas bipods, but I’m not sure how a bipod can make a gun more accurate. Some people like fancy buttstocks, but I have no problems with the one the gun came with.

I think there are people who attack the equipment too much and their own problems too little. It really helps to have a gun you don’t have to fight, but tactical pants and $2500 scopes are not substitutes for criticizing your technique problems.

Should I try a real sniper caliber, like .300 Lapua? I see no reason to. The ammunition costs more, and it beats up your shoulder. Also, 6.5 Creedmoor is a real sniper caliber. It’s just not a super-crazy sniper caliber. If you can hit people at almost 1400 yards, you are a sniper. Carlos Hathcock couldn’t do that with his .30-06.

Next, I have to get the Tikka T3x out. If it shoots better than the RPR, I’m going to have mixed emotions. I have over $1600 in the Ruger, the Tikka was about $1000, and it’s a deer rifle.

Remember to stay out of my yard. It gets more dangerous every day!

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